26-year old switch-hitting CF Dexter Fowler has been a tease to this point in his career for the Rockies. In his first four years, Fowler has career highs of 84 runs scored, 6 homers and 45 RBIs. But, he is off to a good start for the Rockies with the bat so far this year. He has played in 21 games for the Rockies so far this year and he is 17 of 68 (.250 avg, .805 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 4 homers, 10 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. The Rockies hope that Fowler keeps up the good work.

The Rockies have placed 33-year old righty starting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained right shouder which happened in a bicycle accident. Guthrie has pitched in 4 games (all starts) for the Rockies this year and he is 2-1 with a 5.92 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. The Rockies have called up 28-year old righty starting pitcher Guillermo Moscoso to replace Guthrie in the rotation. Moscoso has pitched in 4 games (all starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he was 1-3 with a 7.91 ERA and a 2.02 WHIP. But, Moscoso has pitched in 34 games (21 starts) so far in his major league career and he is 8-10 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. I have a feeling that Moscoso is going to do a decent job for the Rockies.

36-year old righty closer Rafael Betancourt and 31-year old righty set-up man Matt Belisle have been locking down games late so far this year for the Rockies. Belisle has pitched in 7 games (0 starts) for the Rockies so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.15 WHIP. He has only allowed 1 base runner (it was a hit) while whiffing 6 batters in his first 6 2/3 innings. Betancourt has pitched in 7 games (0 starts) for the Rockies so far this year and he is 0-0 with 5 saves, a 1.29 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. The Rockies are glad that things are working out at the back end of the bullpen as they took a big chance in going with these guys to close out games.

44-year old former 2B Eric Young Sr. was a rock solid player for the Rockies. He played in 613 games in his five years with the Rockies and he was 626 of 2,120 (.295 avg, .790 OPS) with 378 runs scored, 30 homers, 227 RBIs and 180 stolen bases. Young’s best year for the Rockies came in 1996. He played in 141 games in 1996 for the Rockies and he was 184 of 568 (.324 avg, .814 OPS) with 113 runs scored, 8 homers, 74 RBIs and 53 stolen bases (which led the National League). He was an N.L. All-Star in 1996 and he won the Silver Slugger Award. Young is the Rockies’ all-time leader in steals with 180 of them. He is also #10 in runs scored (378), #5 in triples (28) and #8 in walks (254) in Rockies’ history. Eric Young’s son, 26-year old switch-hitting 2B/OF Eric Young Jr. plays for the Rockies right now. He has played in 12 games for the Rockies so far this year and he is 5 of 12 (.417 avg, 1.128 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 0 homers, 2 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Young Jr. has now played in 170 games in his first four years with the Rockies and he is 110 of 439 (.251 avg, .633 OPS) with 71 runs scored, 1 homer, 21 RBIs and 51 stolen bases. Jr. has the same skill set as his father, but he just can’t seem to break into the starting lineup.

26-year old lefty swinging outfielder Tyler Colvin played in 80 games for the Cubs last year and he was 31 of 206 (.150 avg, .509 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 6 homers and 20 RBIs. The Rockies thought that Colvin was a much better player than he showed last year, so they dealt for him over the winter. So far, so good for Colvin in 2012. He has played in 10 games for the Rockies so far this year and he is 9 for 26 (.346 avg, .947 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. The Rockies hope he keeps up the good work.

The Rockies have released 21-year old righty starter/reliever Albert Campos. Campos pitched in 15 games (all starts) in A-ball last year for the Rockies and he was 6-4 with a 5.19 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He pitched in 70 games (39 starts) in his four years in the minors with the Rockies and he was 12-15 with 5 saves, a 3.43 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. The Rockies just couldn’t tolerate his off-field behavior, so they let him go. He’s too talented to not get another chance, so some team is going to pick him up in 2012.

49-year old lefty starting pitcher Jamie Moyer was outstanding last Tuesday Night against the San Diego Padres. He threw 7 innings in which he gave up 6 hits, 2 unearned runs and he walked 2 batters while whiffing only 1 batter. Moyer didn’t have a pitch break 80 miles per hour in this game as he is an artist on the mound. Moyer broke major league record that had stood since 1932, as he became the oldest pitcher to win a major league game, besting Jack Quinn by 81 days. Moyer’s win came oddly enough on the 66th anniversary of Quinn’s death in 1946. Moyer has now pitched in 3 games (all starts) for the Padres so far this year and he is 1-2 with a 2.55 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Moyer is now 32 wins away from 300 for a career, and I’m not betting against him getting it.

23-year old righty swinging infielder D.J. LeMahieu came into this season as the Rockies’ #13 prospect according to Baseball America. He was one of the last cuts for the Rockies in spring training. He is off to a good start in AAA-ball where he has played in 12 games in which he is 15 for 46 (.326 avg, .808 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer, 6 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. LaMahieu got his first shot at the show last year with the Cubs and he played in 37 games in which he was 15 for 60 (.250 avg, .545 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 4 RBIs. LeMahieu is going to get a shot at 3B for the Rockies if Chris Nelson doesn’t start playing better.

38-year old lefty swinging 1B Todd Helton is off to a solid start for the Rockies in 2012. Helton has played in 8 games for the Rockies so far this year and he is 8 for 28 (.286 avg, .855 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs. He has only whiffed 1 time so far this year as he is locked in at the plate. Helton will keep adding to his numbers in 2012 as he is the Rockies’ all-time leader in games played (2,062), runs scored (1,332), hits (2,371), doubles (557), homers (348), RBIs (1,316) and walks (1,259). Helton is also #4 in Rockies’ history in triples with 35 of them, but I don’t see him adding too many of those in 2012. The Rockies hope that Helton stays healthy in 2012, which is always an issue with him due to back problems in recent years.

The Rockies’ AAA ballclub will be without 24-year old lefty swinging Tim Wheeler for the next month due to surgery to repair a broken right hand. Wheeler has played in 8 games in AAA-ball for the Rockies so far this year and he is 5 for 25 (.200 avg, .655 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 0 homers, 4 RBIs and 1 stolen base. This is a bad break for Wheeler as he came into this season as the Rockies’ #5 prospect according to Baseball America. Wheeler has played in 343 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 363 of 1,369 (.265 avg, .793 OPS) with 242 runs scored, 50 homers, 188 RBIs and 54 stolen bases.